Device to stretch selected areas of shoe uppers



May 16, 1961 E. c. WEIBLEN 2,983,936

DEVICE TO STRETCH SELECTED AREAS OF SHOE UPPERS Filed May 25, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ERWIN C. WEIBLEN ATTOPMF'Y M y 1961 ac. WEIBLEN I 2,983,936

DEVICE TO STRETCH SELECTED AREAS OF SHOE UPPERS Filed May 25, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 w I 63 i 5 24 P 38b 7 INVENTOR .1 77 1/17 ERWIN c. WEIBLEN ATTOPME) United States Patent DEVICE TOSTRETCH SELECTED AREAS OF SHOE UPPERS Erwin 'C. Weiblen, 172-90 Highland Ave., Jamaica 32, NY.

Filed May 25, 1959, Ser. No. 815,354

1 Claim. '(Cl. 12-1154) This invention concerns a device for stretching shoe uppers and more particularly relates to tongs expanding leather or fabric of shoe uppers in localized areas.

A device of the character described has utility in situations where parts of shoes must be expanded to allow rooms for bunions, corns and other foot conditions requiring altering of footwear.

According to the invention there is provided a pair of tongs carrying dies for shaping the body of a shoe upper. The tongs include two lever pivotally joined together. In order to enter a shoe, one of the two levers is a long, rigid member having an extended end carrying one of the dies. The other lever is a bifurcated member with two jaws. The one lever is pivotally attached to an end of one jaw of the other lever and terminates a short distance from the pivot joint. The levers terminate at their other ends in hand grips or handles. The other jaw of the other lever carries a mating die at its free end. When the handles are pressed together manually, a considerable mechanical advantage is obtained by reason of the particular fulcrum arrangement in which the pivot joint or bearing is located close to the forming dies. Thus, the two dies are forced together with a sufficient force to stretch and shape the shoe body in a desired manner.

It is therefore a particular object of the invention to provide a shoe shaping and stretching device including a pair of pivotally attached levers, one of the levers being a rigid member with a hand grip at one end, a forming die at the other end, and a pivot bearing close to the forming die, the other lever being a rigid bifurcated member having two jaws, with a forming die at the end of one of the jaws and with the other jaw being pivotally joined to the pivot bearing.

It is another object to provide a device in the form of a pair of tongs for stretching selected parts of a shoe upper.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended claim in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawings forming a material part of this disclosure:

Fig. l is a side elevational view of the device shown in use on a shoe.

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of one lever of the device.

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of another lever of the device.

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of the device per se.

Fig. 5 is a persepective view of end portions of the device, including the pivot joint.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale taken on line 66 of Fig. 5.

'Fig. 7 is an elevational view partially in section of the ends of the levers shown shaping a portion of a shoe.

Figs. 8 and 10 are views similar to Fig. 6 of different lever end structures.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a bearing member emplolyed in the structure of Fig. 8, prior to assembly therewit Referring to Figs. 1-7, there is shown device D including a metal lever 20 having a loop 22 at one end defining a hand or finger grip. The other end of the lever is formed as bifurcated structure having a lower shorter jaw 24 and a longer upper jaw 26. The free end of the upper jaw carries a circular die 28. This die is disk-shaped and has a centrally disposed recess 30 best shown in Fig. 7. A central hole 32 is formed in the die to permit entry therein of leather or fabric during operation of the device. The device includes another lever 34 having two generally parallel coplanar ends 36 and 38 offset from each other by an angularly disposed central section 40. End 316 is smoothed and somewhat curved to serve as a hand grip. End 38 carries an upwardly extending circular disk-like die 42. This die has a knob or protuberance 44 adapted to fit into the recess 30 of die 28. Close to the die 42 is a pintle '46 to which is pivotally secured the free end of the lower jaw 24 of lever 20. The distance from the axial center of pintle 46 to the axial center of die 42 is five to ten or more times the distance from the axial center of the pintle to the center of the hand grip 36. As a result of the close spacing of the fulcrum of lever 34 to the die 42, there is obtained a mechanical advantage which multiplies the force applied to the hand grips 22, 36 by the order of five to ten or more. The distance from the pintle '46 to the center of die 28 is equal to the distance from the pintle 46 to the center of die 42. Also, the distance from pintle 46 to the center of loop 22 is substantially equal to the distance from the pintle to the center of hand grip 36.

In Fig. 7 is clearly shown how the leather body of a shoe upper S is shaped to form an outward bulge or pocket P adapted to allow room for a bunion or the like of a wearers foot. The bifurcated jaw structure of lever 20 permits the lower jaw 24 to be inserted well into the shoe S as clearly shown in Fig. 1, close to the point of application of the dies 28, 42 on the end of upper jaw 26 and the end 38 of lever 34.

Fig. 6 shows how the ends 46 and 46 of the pintle 46 can be spread like a swaged rivet into countersunk ends of holes 50, 52 of the lever ends 24, 38 to anchor the pintle therein.

Fig. 8 shows an alternate joint structure in which a shoulder stud or pintle 55 has swaged end 5 6 in hole 50 and a head 57 abutting the outside of lever end 38 The pintle 55 is formed with a flange 58 spacing the pivoting members slightly apart. The pintle has a shank portion 59 in lever end 38 and another shank portion 60 in the lever end of jaw 24. Fig. 9 shows the pintle 55 before it is inserted into the structure of Fig. 8 to secure the members together. Shanks 59 and 60 are unswaged to permit them to pass through the holes 50 and 52 of the members 24 and 38*. Figs. 6 and 8 show the ends of the levers formed as drop forgings or castings.

Fig. 10 illustrates an alternate structure of the device in which the levers 20* and 34 have their ends 24 and 38 formed of sheet metal bent in doubled form to increase their strength. The lever jaw 24* is generally U-shaped in cross section and the lever 34 pivots between the sides of the jaw. Pintle 46 secures the members together. This pintle may have an O-ring or spring 62 engaged in a groove at one end of the pintle, and a shoulder '63 on the other end, or if desired one or both ends of the pintle may be swaged to hold the members pivotally together.

In any event, the structure will operate in the manner illustrated by Figs. 1 and 7, to shape any part of shoe upper as desired to stretch the leather or fabric permanently to form a recess or pocket in the shoe body,

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise constructions herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent A device to stretch selected areas of shoe uppers, comprising a first lever having a rigid metal body with a bifurcated end formed with two jaws, one of the jaws being longer than the other, a die secured to the free end of the longer of the jaws, the shorter of the jaws having a hole therein, at it free end, a loop for receiving fingers of a user of said device formed at the other end of said body, another lever comprising a rigid metal body having a pair of substantially parallel coplanar end portions 0E- set from each other by an angularly disposed central portion, one of said end portions being slightly curved and smoothed to serve as a hand grip, another die shaped to mate with and fit into the first'named die integrally formed at the free end of the other of said end portions, said other end portion having a hole located near said other die, and a pivot bearing, the holes in the levers being disposed in registration, said bearing passing through the registering holes and pivotally joining the levers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 744,078 Johnston Nov. 17, 1903 855,110 Lybeck May 28, 1907 987,456 Gauer Mar. 21, 1911 1,165,605 Johnson Dec. 28, 1915 FOREIGN PATENTS 5,443 Great Britain Mar. 14, 1901 

